Way of the Wolf
by swimfast12
Summary: Remus Lupin's story, beginning with the return of Voldemort. A look into the mind of a worldweary hero and friend. RLNT later on.
1. The Pact

-**Maybe some of you will remember the hopelessly unpopular fic I entitled "Lupin's Tale". Well, needless to say, the fic was pointless. But I recently finished reading a fic called "Canis Lupus", look it up its awesome, and made me want to take another shot at writing about one of my favorite HP characters…cue dramatic music… REMUS LUPIN! Alright. Updating will be slow, since I'm trying to put a lot of thought into every chapter. ****The story begins right after GoF, when Sirius is supposed to be rounding up 'the old crowd' of Order members. ****Tell me what you think!-**SF12

_"He shall return one day Remus; mark my words, he'll be back, stronger than ever…"_

_Darkness consumed my dream, and I watched as the figure of Albus Dumbledore faded from my mind's eye, and the pale face of Voldemort replaced it. And raised his wand…_

I awoke with a start, drenched in sweat. Panicking, I sat bolt upright grabbing my wand from my battered bedside table. "_Lumos!_" I cried, and the room was instantly illuminated by the light billowing from my wand. I scanned the room, ready for anything.

Except for me, my bedroom was empty. There was no sign of anything dangerous. Nevertheless, I muttered a spell under my breath to make sure. Indeed, there was no one else in my house.

I breathed a sigh of relief. Idiot. It was just a freakin' dream-how old was I, ten?!

Ah well, I couldn't kid myself for too long-I knew that as a werewolf, I had the enhanced side effects of lycanthropy-one of them included annoyingly scary nightmares. And after all, I'd had plenty before-this morn was no different from a dozen others over the years. Dreams about anything from that damn evil villain made of caramel to dreams about…Lily and James.

Shut up, Moony. I berated myself. Dwelling on the past was something I'd learned not to do-the hard way. I got out of bed and got dressed. I seriously could use some coffee after that stupid dream.

Ah, caffeine, my second favorite vice. Chocolate was my first of course- I am nothing in the face of the all-powerful chocolate. It commanded everything.

I descended my rickety staircase into the kitchen, grabbed a mug of coffee, loaded it with enough cream and sugar to make the nearest health nut gasp, and drank it swiftly. I felt instantly better, but I can't pretend that that dream hadn't scared me. In life, I was always willing to face evil-heck, I talked to my landlord every week…

All jokes aside, I generally was able to face a villain and defeat him without too much fear. It had helped me a lot in school so many years ago, before I befriended my fellow Marauders. But in dreams, I felt weak, powerless…I suppose everyone felt that way sometimes. But my dreams had a tendency to come true-that old hag that I'd met while teaching at Hogwarts, Sybil Trelawney, had told me I would be a great Seer if I 'let my Inner Eye seek."

No, I don't know what she was on. Don't ask.

Not satisfied with my dose of caffeine, I pawed through my dilapidated fridge for a chocolate bar. I knew that I was just searching for a distraction, and the logical part of my mind brought me to a halt. I had always been the brainy one in the classes at Hogwarts, the one that makes you feel stupid. But at heart I was a Marauder-brave, reckless, witty, and yet serious when I should be. Which was a lot, considering just how emotional my life can be. So you could say I'm a lot more serious on the outside than on the inside-as one of the last true Marauders, I guess being mature was kind of important.

Needless to say, having to balance the two personalities was both a pain in the neck and sometimes amusing.

Pausing only to refill my coffee mug, I sat down at the table and looked at this situation my habitually logical way:

Okay, so I'd had a dream about Voldemort. Well, more than one over the past month-maybe two or three. No, definitely three. And each dream had involved an appearance of darkness-that was to be expected-and I'd heard at least three different people talking during my dreams- James Potter, his son Harry, Sirius Black and Albus Dumbledore.

I took a quill and some ink from the cabinet, and wrote the names down on the back of my grocery list. So, Albus, James and Harry, and Sirius- what were their significance? All people I cared about, that was one thing. I had been wondering if the dreams meant they were all in some sort of trouble-it was quite possible-from what I've heard, Harry was part of the Triwizard Tournament, one the most dangerous competitions in the world, and I cannot say that I wasn't worried about him. I'd have watched last night at his final round, but I'd been out job-hunting. Ever since that toad-woman, Dolores Umbridge, passed those laws concerning werewolves, I've been out of a job, and out of money-hence, my aforementioned arguments with my landlord were constant.

So Dumbledore's face fades away and Voldemort appears…no, that doesn't Dumbledore mean is Voldemort or anything. Maybe it means that Voldemort's weakened form is somewhere at Hogwarts…or worse.

I was startled out of my calculations by a rather angry owl from the _Daily Prophet_. Apparently, it had been waiting for along time in my kitchen, but caught up in my torrential thoughts to notice. It didn't really like that.

Let's put it this way- by the next scene in my life, I was washing a large cut on my finger and the bloodthirsty owl had perched itself on my counter. I swear, if animals could smirk, this owl would be the smuggest little bird in the world. I'd always loved pets-I had an owl of my own- but this one was just evil. I gave it the money, but didn't include a treat, and received another cbite on my finger.

"Okay, okay, I'll give you your Owl Treat, just take an anger management class or something." I tossed the little bird its reward for biting me, and it gave a hoot of pleasure, even nudging my hand in a way that could be considered pleasant.

"See?" I said softly to the bird. "I'm a friend. I won't hurt you." Like I said, I have a great love for animals.

I stroked the owl's feathers absentmindedly before it flew off-I knew how it felt. Most adults would lash out at anyone if not given their coffee. Plus, it was so graceful as it flew, so free…

I then proceeded to collapse onto an old armchair, my dream forgotten. I planned a quiet, peaceful morning, starting with a nice crossword puzzle and ending with the news. Plus, I still had coffee left.

I flipped through the paper idly, glancing at headlines while I searched for the crossword. That's when I saw the headline- it jumped out at me like a bird to its prey. I can't describe the awful feeling, the sense of ill…I was shocked, stunned, distraught in the face of one chilling header.

HARRY POTTER CLAIMS YOU-KNOW-WHO HAS RETURNED

My coffee cup clattered to floor and shattered, while I stood with my eyes fixed on the paper. I couldn't say I hadn't expected it one day, but the thought of Voldemort's return was horrifying. We didn't need another all-out war.

Harry…I knew if he said Voldemort was back, it was true. I took a deep breath, and let it out slowly, repairing the broken mug with a wave of my wand.

I now knew what my dream had meant.

I stowed my wand in my robes, and tossed my newspaper across the room. I knew I would read the article in a few moments, but I had to adjust. The bane of some of the greatest witches and wizards had returned, like Dumbledore had always said he would. Like I had always known, but tried to forget.

_Ding-dong_

I swear, my nerves were so high-strung that I jumped five feet in the air at the mere sound of my doorbell. Forcing myself to calm down, I started towards the door.

Wait.

The first thing Voldemort would do now that he was back is to go after members of the old Order of the Phoenix. That could be him. It wasn't paranoia; it was a fifty percent chance.

I took another gasp of breath and whipped out my wand of rowan, calling out in a commanding tone. "Declare yourself!"

The only answer was a loud bark.

"Sirius," I breathed, and gave a mental sigh of relief, striding over to the door and pulling it open.

A rather large, shaggy black dog growled its thanks and within the second, was a tall, gaunt man, with paling skin that showed the signs of staying inside too much. He shook his long mane of straggly hair to one side and greeted me breathlessly. "'Lo, Remus."

I clapped him on the back, smiling, and led him into the living room. "Sirius! You nearly caused a cardiac arrest-I was sure Voldemort was coming to call. I assume you know he's back."

Sirius blinked in confusion. "Actually, I was coming to tell you about it. How'd you find out?" he questioned, glancing curiously around as if expecting to see a bright neon sign entitled "VOLDEMORT'S BACK" just lying around somewhere.

I pointed my wand into the air, and muttered, "_Accio Prophet!" _The wretched newspaper came flying out of the room landed pell-mell in my arms. I pointed to the article.

Sirius nodded. "Well, then I guess you know the details. Dumbledore has me out tracking down the old Order members-Figgy, Dung, Kingsley, Elphias Doge…you're the last one on my list. I've been up all night tracking 'em down. Figgy nearly beat me off with her purse-I guess word hadn't got out to her that I was innocent. Damn, what does she pack in that thing, bricks?" He gingerly touched a rather sore-looking bruise on his head.

I shook my head. "Actually, I don't know the details-the information was just started to sink in when you showed up. Oh, and if you look in that drawer there, you might find a copy of _The Healer's Helpmate_. My mom sent me it for Christmas last year and I use it whenever I forget to make the Wolfsbane potion, and get all those cuts. Might help with your bruise."

"Thanks," Sirius found the book and squinted at the page, searching for the right page. While he gently pressed his wand to his wound, he looked up solemnly at me."Do you want to know what happened?"

I was silent for a moment and then said in what I hoped was a level voice, "I need to know, but I won't like it. Tell me."

Sirius seemed to have expected that answer and began his tale. "It all starts with Harry. He won the Cup, you know? He and Cedric Diggory of Hufflepuff both reached for the trophy at the same time. The Cup was a Portkey… and Wormtail was waiting."

My hatred for Peter Pettigrew intensified tenfold-first he betrays James and Lily and now this…I swear, if I run into him again, I want him punished for all the horror he's caused.

Sirius went on, "He performed some sort of ceremony, and…it happened. Voldemort rose from a cauldron and summoned his followers. He and Harry dueled…and his parents came out of his wand when it connected to Voldemort's. Dumbledore said it had something to do with Fawkes's feathers being in the cores of both wands."

"Priori Incantatem." I said, sucking in a breath. James and Lily had returned to this world today, if only temporarily. The thought flooded warmth through my body, taking away the coldness of Sirius's story.

"Exactly. Apparently, they distracted Voldemort, and Harry Summoned the Portkey, escaping back to the arena. Diggory wasn't so lucky-he was among those in the Priori Incantatem…" Sirius said sorrowfully.

I felt pretty bad myself, but our first concern had to be for Harry. "Who made the Cup into a Portkey? Wormtail?"

My old friend let out a humorless barking laugh. "Are you kidding? The slimy rat couldn't Transfigure a teacup, much less handle a Portus charm. No, someone with power was at hand-Barty Crouch Junior, as it turns out. He was impersonating Mad-Eye Moody all year long."

Now that was news to me. "Barty Crouch Junior? But isn't he…?" I let it hang, not wanting to make a depressing situation even more sad.

"Apparently not. That fool, Cornelius Fudge, set a Dementor on him, though. And as it turns out, the sniveling little coward doesn't believe Harry and Dumbledore-thinks they're crazy. I'll bet you my wand that that article of yours thinks those two are loony, too." Sirius made a noise in the back of his throat that seemed eerily similar to a canine growl.

I'd always disliked Fudge; his employment of Dolores Umbridge made many points against him-but this was getting out of hand.

I Summoned a couple of butterbeers from the kitchen and set one down in front of Sirius, who nodded his thanks before dumping half of it down his throat. It must have been a long journey.

Sirius finished a long gulp and heaved a rather uncharacteristic sigh. "That's not all, Remus."

A sense of awful foreboding entered my soul as I waited for Sirius to finish, hoping with all my heart that Harry was okay.

"Voldemort's potion made it so he could touch Harry. His mother's love is now only protective when Harry is at the Dursleys'-that's a different branch of the magic she set for him. He's not safe from Voldemort anywhere else."

It was as if someone had punched me in the stomach with the news-it felt like a physical blow. It couldn't be…but it must be. Sirius wouldn't lie to me.

I regained my focus and looked up at him in a calm manner. Well, about as calm as I could get at that moment.

"You know, I guess we should thought of this beforehand. Voldemort had always hated weaknesses-we learned that from all those duels, all those Death Eaters battles. Anything that questioned his power had to be stamped out. You remember. We should've been ready for this situation." I said.

Sirius agreed and said heavily, "Yeah, we should have guessed. But there's nothing we can do about it except…" He looked me directly in the eye, and asked, "Do you remember the promise?"

How could I forget? "Of course I remember the promise."

It had been a cold day, and snowy at that-a day full of seriousness and justice-Dumbledore had called us, as a group to Hogwarts, mere hours before James and Lily intended to go into hiding. So cold…

_I emerged from the __Forbidden Forest__ where I'd Apparated, shivering and pulling my thin coat around me. Trying to force my teeth from chattering, I waited for several moments, until a gigantic black dog came romping __around from behind a tree, greeting me with som__e loud complaints about the weather__, woofing and b__aying. I smiled to myself__ Sirius fit his animal well._

_Squeaking piteously, a rat__ named Pettigrew__covered in snow__ followed us as we strode into the Hogwarts grounds.__ The place__ seemed lonely-the governors had decided to close it down for a few weeks, considering the number of Eater attacks lately. I didn't blame them, but it seemed a shame to deprive students of that beautiful place of learning I'd been a werewolf, __cast out__ among society, but I'd stayed there all along._

_Dumbledore met us at the gates, flanked by worried-looking Lily and James Potter. He had abandoned his warm, cheery smile and instead looked very tired. Lily and Prongs seemed a little happier-Lily was holding baby Harry close to her chest, and I could see her love for the child, which brought stability to an otherwise sober evening._

_We adjourned to Dumbledore's office, and he began to speak, wearily but nevertheless defiant._

_" I have called you all here __to discuss a matter of utmost certainty and importance. It involves all of you. It unites all of us with our undying love for the one person had the center of this situation." At last he smiled, and his blue eyes twinkled faintly._

_"That o__ne person __is Harry James Potter__."_

_Once we got over our initial surprise, Dumbledore explained his reasoning to us. Lily and James seemed to know already-after all, he was their son._

_"For the sake of safety, I cannot tell all of you what is so special about Harry-this is not a matter of trust, but of precaution. Through my guesswork, which could very well be wrong, I have concluded that Harry Potter is the solution to our problems. He must defeat Voldemort. It is his birthright, his destiny. Or so I believe. There is another child who may possess the gifts__ to vanquish such evil, but I think it is Harry."_

_He took a deep breath and carried on, his voice ringing in a way that I knew the words would stay with me forever. "Thus, we must make a pact. It is our duty to protect Harry from the forces that seek to harm him. He must complete the final task himself, but we must assist and defend him in any way we can-even if it means falling in his stead."_

_We all wholeheartedly agreed to pledge our lives to the cause of Harry's protection-all of us, but Peter Pettigrew. But he promised, too, at last-I should've seen his hesitation, predicted his betrayal…but alas, I did not._

_On that cold night, the six of us made a pact, a promise, sealed with love and honor. There was no paper, no ink, no signatures…but it existed magically in our hearts._

I blinked, having replayed that scene at top speed in my head. Oh, yes, I remembered all the details…

"The pact still exists," I found myself saying proudly. "No matter what Pettigrew has done, the pact remains resolved. We will fight to keep Harry safe from harm-as friends, protectors, mentors…but we must never let him know. Harry never wants to put anyone else in front of him-he always wants to do things alone. It would hurt his dignity. We have to make a safe environment for him to emerge as a powerful wizard we are certain he shall be. The Boy Who Lived shall become the Man Who Fought. We shall stay, honor-bound to where we belong-at his side, with Ron and Hermione."

Sirius applauded. "We won't let him down." He said, and raised his tankard. "To the pact."

I raised mine as well, "And to Harry!" The bottles clanked together and we drank to our hopes and quieting our fears.

-**I like to see it as canonical, but just not mentioned. After all it was a secret. I've never really like AU fics much, so I'm kind of nearing that line but not crossing it. It's a stretch, I know, but I really love the idea**** Howver, you may notice that later on in the fic, I might try not to focus on the sad parts of HP, like all the character losses. I figure JKR has done enough of that.**** Now, hit the big button that makes me really happy. That one. No, a little closer-the one that says REVIEW. Just tell me what you think, but if you're flaming, keep it moderate, for the writer's sake-**SF12


	2. Dementors' Attack

**-Ch.2 is up! Now, I've noticed something around here that makes me a little annoyed. About three or four of you have added this fic to your Story Alert list, but neglected to review it. ****Now, if you have the time to Story Alert it, surely you can write a little critique. Plus, I CAN MAKE YOU!!! MWAHAHAHAHA! Okay, so strictly speaking I can't…it must be the Halloween spirit sneaking up on me. Oh well! You get my point-you no review, I no write! Get it, got it, good. NOW READ-**SF12

Months after Sirius came to see me, I found myself in Little Whinging, staring across the street at Harry Potter.

He couldn't see me, of course. I was using Mad-Eye's Invisibility Cloak. It was in the early hours of the morning, and the sun was just barely beginning to make its way up onto the horizon. I'd always loved that sort of scene, and I'll admit I was thoroughly enjoying myself.

Harry yawned from across the street. I'd used Magnification Charm on his window, and I could ensure his safety. It seemed so ridiculous that someone could disrupt such a warm, comfortable morning, even Voldemort.

From what I could see, Harry did not look happy as he reread some of his mail from a few days ago. I imagine they were from his best friends Ron or Hermione, or even from Sirius, and from the looks on his face, the words were not satisfactory. His squinting eyes showed his profuse scanning of the parchment, possibly searching for a hidden meaning among the ink. He wouldn't find it.

It felt demonic, keeping Harry in the dark like this. I had to restrain myself from sweeping off the cloak and going to talk to him after he threw some letters across the room. It pained my soul to watch him, out of the loop, separated from Wizarding society like this. His only connection seemed to be the _Daily Prophet_, and I daresay that the paper probably had a negative effect on him. They talked about him like he was garbage. I'd always hated the _Prophet_, especially with Rita Skeeter writing for it. I'd been to school with dear old Rita, the awful woman-she'd been in Ravenclaw, but I'd heard that the Sorting Hat deeply considered sending her to Slytherin House. She'd tried to get a story out of me about Aberforth Dumbledore's goat difficulties, but I managed to avoid her-even then, she was trying for an internship at the _Prophet_. What a hateful woman she was-although she got exactly what she deserved when James put Bubotuber Pus in her expensive hair-curling shampoo. Oh, the look on her face was priceless…

After a few brief chuckles at Rita's expense, I quieted myself and kept watch over Harry. Keeping him stuck with those Dursleys made my skin crawl-I'd met them at the Potters' wedding, and couldn't stand them. I was tempted to tell Harry everything, as Sirius had always argued we should, but Dumbledore was firm on that point. Harry was not to know anything. It was totally unfair in my opinion, but I supposed Dumbledore was right. After all, this was the man who had thought up the pact-surely he would know what was best for Harry. I hoped.

I glanced at my wristwatch, decorated with miniature planets and such. My shift was almost over-I'd been here for more hours then I felt like counting. My replacement would come in three, two, one…

With a faint pop, a short, half-drunk man appeared at my side. "'Ey there, Lupin…everything going along fine 'round here?"

Mundungus Fletcher, of course. He and I were on very good terms-I'd defended him when Madam Rosmerta accused him of not paying for his drink years ago. Rosmerta had always had a soft spot for me-heaven knows why-and gave Dung the firewhisky on the house. Ever since, he'd helped me out of a few tight spots, now and then. I couldn't trust him as far as I could throw him without magic, but he was good to have around for a laugh. It was a good to know that at least one person had it worse than me.

Yeah, I know, kinda sad.

"Morning, Dung. Ready for the day shift?" I asked, my nose twitched unpleasantly at his rather repulsive stench. I always wondered if his parents had nicknamed him Dung for that reason…

"Well, yeah, but…" He shuffled his feet, not looking me in the eye.

In short, nothing out of the ordinary.

"But what?" I said, turning my useful 'responsible one' look on.

"Well, I got a good opportunity comin' up-rumor has it, there's a bunch of cauldron shipments goin' on 'round here-thought I might get a chance to, y'know, check 'em out." He looked rather uncomfortable, despite a few weak attempts at laughter.

This was no laughing matter-Harry's safety was something I was completely unwilling to jeopardize. "No," I said sternly, "You'll stay right here, understood?"

He nodded half-heartedly. "Yeah, yeah…I'll stay, don't you worry none."

I wasn't entirely sure of that, but there seemed to be nothing else I could do to ensure Dung would stay. Unless…

I had an idea that James Potter would've been proud of. I'd go to see one of the most authoritative people in the Wizarding world.

I bade Dung a good day, and made my way down Privet Drive to a well-painted white house, that despite it's outer beauty, smelled of an overload of cat fur.

That's right. You guessed it.

"Why, Remus Lupin! Oh, my dear boy, it's been so long since I've seen you. Give me hug, you old charmer, you!" Arabella Figg was even happier to see me than I imagined. The Marauders had always been welcome at Arabella's, and she'd taken a liking to all of us. That is, except Peter-her cats were none too fond of the little rat. Literally.

"Hello, Arabella, how are you doing?" I poured on a little casualness, a technique I'd learned from Sirius. Draw them right in.

The kindly old lady smiled at me, swinging open her screen door and giving me a warm hug. "Dear, would you like some tea? I just made a pot, you know how Mr. Tibbles likes a good saucer full now and again."

Oh, I certainly knew. The cat had charmed me out of my tea more than once. Lucky little devil-I think he's half Kneazle.

"I'm sorry you know I'd love to stay, but I just got off guard duty, and I could use a few hours of sleep. No, I just came to ask a small favor of you, but I don't want to trouble you if you're busy." I stated, still grinning. Those good times we'd had at Arabella's, or Figgy's, as Dung and Sirius liked to call her, were a highlight of my life. We'd met her at our own Hogwarts graduation-she was Michaela Figg's aunt. She then joined the Marauders' end-of-the-year party, and the friendship began.

"No, no, I'm not busy at all. What do you need?" She seemed so eager, I knew she was thinking of the good times as well. Voldemort could do his best to go after us in those days, but we refused to cower in our homes.

"I wonder if you could keep an eye on Mundungus Fletcher-it's his turn at guard duty, and he mentioned something about pinching some cauldrons…"

She nodded vigorously. "Of course, Remus. I'll look out for that piece of slime-in fact…!" She retreated into her home and emerged moments later, an aging but still spry tabby cat in her arms. A very familiar tabby cat.

"Mr. Tibbles." I said, trying hard to keep a straight face as I imagined what James would've said when he saw me greeting that feline after fifteen-odd years apart.

The cat looked up at me, and then reached out with its paws, as if to grasp me in a handshake.

Weird cat. Ah well, like I've said-animals love me. It's a gift.

"Aw, he remembers you!" Arabella cooed. Her tone became serious and she looked directly at the old tom. "Mr. Tibbles, go make sure Fletcher isn't deserting, the little mongrel. Go on, then."

The loyal cat sprang from her arms dutifully and with a parting glance at me, slunk off with its tail held aloft, heading for the Dursley home.

I followed his train of thought, and Apparated back to headquarters. I had a calm day planned put-eat a light luncheon, get some sleep and spend the rest of the day reading.

-----------------------------------

_"It is our duty to protect Harry from the forces that seek to harm him…"_

_It was a plac__e I recognized-where could it be? It was dark, so dark…and suddenly curses began to fly…jets__ of __green light…an evil, cold voice…_

"Remus! Remus! Rouse yourself! REMUS! Wake up!"

My eyes snapped open, adjusting to the dark with inhuman ability. A red-headed man stood above me, shaking me roughly. Arthur Weasley was bent over me-his flaming hair stood out in the blackness. My extrasensory vision couldn't do everything-I found my wand and flicked it at the lamp beside me, filling the room with light.

I leapt up from my bed, looking around for the source of Arthur's urgency. I had nodded off in a guest bedroom of Order of the Phoenix Headquarters, which was Sirius's home.

I turned my attention to Arthur, whose glasses were askew. Hurriedly fixing them, he said breathlessly, "Harry's been attacked!"

My heart skipped a beat. "What? How?" I questioned as I followed him downstairs, three steps at a time.

"Dementors, Remus, dementors. They showed up in Little Whinging of all places! I only just found out-Fletcher told Dumbledore, who alerted us." We reached the kitchen, where Arthur snatched up a piece of parchment and Pre-Inked Quill, scribbling a messy note.

"Is Harry all right?" I asked, peering over his shoulder to decipher what he'd written.

"Yes, he's fine-Arabella led him back to the Dursleys'. But we've got much bigger problems now. The Ministry has expelled Harry. Dumbledore's down there trying to convince them otherwise." Arthur finished writing and beckoned his owl, hastily attaching his envelope.

"Sirius must know." I said decisively, Apparating directly upstairs to Sirius's bedroom.

"Sirius!" I cried, appearing with a tremendous crack. Sirius, who'd been reading what looked like a very old letter, looked up. "What's going on?"

"It's Harry-he's been ambushed by dementors!"

Sirius was on his feet before I could explain myself-I watched as he turned on the spot. I recognized the telltale signs of an Apparation and screamed, "No!" pointing my wand at him, thinking "_Impedimenta!_" with all my power.

Sirius froze in place, and I seized him by the collar, disrupting his Apparation. As he came back to reality, he glared at me. "What are you doing?! The pact…"

"You're not going to do Harry any good if Fudge catches you in Little Whinging!" I shouted, angry that he couldn't see reason.

He broke free of my grasp. "What you expect me to do, sit by while my godson is in danger? Remember the pact!"

Before I could come up with an argument, a beautiful silver phoenix soared through the open window, halting three feet from Sirius and I. We watched as the Patronus spoke, Albus Dumbledore's authoritative, wise voice rang within the room. "I am handling this matter. Harry is not expelled. Remus, I need you to prepare a guard-soon enough, Harry must come to Grimmauld Place. Remember, tell him nothing…" The phoenix gave a final majestic call before fading into the air.

Relieved, I calmed my nerves. Harry was okay, he was fine…

My doglike friend was less than soothed, however. "Right, right. So don't worry, kick back, just stay in an old house for all eternity, I can take care of Harry…I'm getting tired of Dumbledore's policies. Harry needs to be protected, but he cannot be sheltered from real life."

I spoke softly, "I think, after his encounter with Voldemort, that Harry has experienced enough for now."

Sirius had very little to say to that, but when I prepared to leave, he began to talk, even quieter than I had. "Why is it, my friend, I feel that Dumbledore is drawing us away from Harry? He needs us, especially now."

"Perhaps the boy is growing up-Dumbledore may want him prepared to face his mission alone, like he's destined to." I mused."

Sirius shook his head, the hint of a smile on his lips. "Remus, we were fifteen once. You're at a point where you think you can do everything alone, but you know you need aid. Harry needs us!"

He had a point. Harry was like a son to the both of us-he needed support, he needed to feel important. But what did I know about what he needed? Granted, I'd known my friends well, but who truly knew what lay ahead and how to prepare yourself for it?

Memories flooded through my mind, and I saw Lily and James in it's eye, just as I see him whenever Harry steps into my life.

"It's like what Lily said to us both once, before they went into hiding. Do you recall it?" I said slowly, facing Sirius.

He said nothing, but I went on undaunted. "She told us that no one is ever truly alone, as long as somewhere, there is love. She's right. We can't always act on impulse to protect Harry-but we will do our best. I don't know why Dumbledore wants us to distance ourselves from him, but it must be for the best."

This time he nodded, and I don't think I imagined his darting glance at the letter.

"And then James told us that very little is what it seems." I said.

"I remember. He also said patience was indeed a virtue but it was still damn annoying."

I laughed harder than I thought possible at the idea and ventured towards the door, stopping at the last moment. "Whatever happens in this time of uncertainty, we must keep together. Dumbledore might have asked us to stay put, but he's wrong. Without companionship, all is lost. That is where Voldemort will fail."

With those parting words of wisdom, I departed to recruit a guard.

Nightfall came to quiet suburban streets of Little Whinging like a deep black blanket, ringing the sky with clouds. Privet Drive was no different from any other street, peaceful with the sounds of cicada chirps and the occasional owl hoot, but still hushed in comparison to the loud city.

Amid the tranquility, a troupe of nine wizards, myself included-some old, some young, some tall, some short, some extremely short-appeared out of nowhere with a chorus of pops. I shook myself-I hated the experience of Apparation. It made feel like I'd just stuck myself into a drainpipe; very tight, very, very tight.

This dislike was apparently shared by one of my companions. Nymphadora Tonks was stumbling along as she attempted to right herself, gasping for breath.

I directed my wand at her neck. "_Anapneo_" I said, and then helped her regain her balance.

She smiled at me, "Thanks, Remus." I shook my head-nothing seemed to faze Dora. She was the kind of person who caused rays of sunshine just about everywhere she went-no matter how many things she knocked over in the process. We could've used her last time around-the battle against Voldemort had been undoubtedly worse. The power of light had been hard to believe in at times, despite all of the friendship and love.

Speaking of light…I fumbled around in my robe pocket and found Dumbledore's Put-Outer, passing it to another compatriot, Alastor Moody. Good man, Alastor-little insane on the whole 'CONSTANT VIGILANCE' thing, but…

Moody held out the magical instrument, clicking it several times. Instantly, all light on Privet Drive spun through air. The Put-Outer caught it all and the obsidian darkness swallowed up the entire street.

Next to me, I heard Tonks' exasperated sigh. "Great. Now, we can't see. Thanks, Mad-Eye. Really. Not all of us have magical eyes."

Moody's response was more of a growl than speech. "It's important to cloak ourselves in the darkness-if we have trouble seeing, we try harder. All because of constant-"

I swear my extrasensory wolf eyes could pick up her rolling her eyes as she cut in-"Yeah, yeah, we all know. Constant vigilance! We've heard…about a thousand times." She added the last part under her breath, but in the unending quiet, everyone heard. Trust me, there was enough quiet laughter outside the house to knock Boggart down flat.

We approached the home and I readied myself. I hadn't seen Harry in over a year-coming to visit him under such dismal terms was not my idea of a happy reunion.

I suppose beggars can't be choosers. The story of my life…

With a quick gesture from Sturgis Podmore, the door swung open without a sound. With Moody and I leading the way, we stepped into the Dursley's over-neat kitchen. The entire place smelled of too much antiseptic, and Tonks briefly enlarged her nose to show her disgust. I bit back a guffaw. Unfortunately, Tonks wasn't watching where she was going, as she was too busy trying to impress us all.

CLANG!I winced as Tonks, who'd banged into the faucet, broke a plate that was lying, freakishly clean, in the sink. She repaired it, mouthing an apologetic "Sorry" towards me.

I shrugged. No harm done, I guess. Plus, it was too silent in the house-it added to the annoying allusion of perfection the Dursleys tried so hard to…well, perfect.

I heard footsteps above, and smiled to myself. Harry had heard us.

The guard moved into the sitting room, and I could just see into the landing above. Kingsley Shacklebolt, an Auror friend who'd accompanied us, whispered a spell, and we all watched as Harry's bedroom door opened, revealing the skinny, messy-haired teenager I was destined to care for and protect, as both a guardian and a friend.

We must have frightened Harry, who drew his wand. I opened my mouth, but Moody beat me to it. We needed to stop him from using more magic-God knows, Dumbledore needed little more on his plate.

"Lower your wand, boy, before you take someone's eye out," Moody said in that kindly manner he's so good at. Honestly, way to be sympathetic.

"Professor Moody?" Harry's voice resounded through the room, lacking confidence. Harry was probably shocked to his wit's end anyway, what with the dementors and all. I felt sorrier than ever that I couldn't tell him _everything_.

Moody had responded, but Harry didn't seem to trust him. With a demeanor like Moody's, who could blame him.

I spoke up, hoping my voice didn't tremble. "It's all right, Harry. We've come to take you away."

I hoped with all my might that I spoke the truth.

-**It's not perfect, but the only thing I would do differently is add in a few flashbacks. **** Ugh, this chapter makes me wince…Tell me if you want the flashbacks****, cause I can revamp it later.**** The next chapter will be much better-more emotion.**** Now click the button-not the story alert button, the review button. Then, the story alert one. Trust me, ****its**** worth it-**SF12


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